The history and theology of figural reading -- Figural history as a question -- The fate of figural reading -- Imagining figural time -- Creative omnipotence and the figures of scripture -- Figural speech and the incarnational synecdoche -- Figural reading in practice -- Juxtapositional reading and the force of the lectionary -- Trinitarian love means two testaments -- The Word's work: figural preaching and scriptural conformance -- Four figural sermons.

A fascinating examination of the Chaldean word-line, the word machine of Greeks and Egyptians, and Sanskrit verse in a quest for the holy grail of truth.

A descendant of a Micmac chief, the author presents a book on Native American spirituality. Outlining the Seven Points of Respect for Native American ceremonies, he goes on to describe their way of life: They don't write in metaphor, they speak it; they don't recite poetry, they live it.

Preaching, and the discipline of preaching, is at a crossroads. The changing realities of church and theological education, the diversity of our classrooms, and our increasingly complex community contexts leave us in search of tools to help train a rising generation of preachers for a future whose contours are far from clear. The questions are immense: How to support preachers in contexts that are diverse religiously, culturally, and ethnically, both inside and outside the church? How to help students take varied contexts seriously as they are formed as leaders? In Ways of the Word, a dynamic team of master preachers brings much-needed help. Different in race, gender, age, and tradition, both Sally A. Brown and Luke A. Powery speak with one voice their belief that preaching is Spirit-empowered event: an embodied, vocalized, actively received, here-and-now witness to the ongoing work of God in the world. They aspire to help students and preachers alike to reflect on a journey of learning by doing. They aim to help preachers to become more attuned to the Spirit, more adept in preaching’s component skills, and more self-aware about all that is at stake in proclaiming the redemptive work of God in specific contexts.

This book addresses the problem of temporal interpretation within narrative of the biblical Hebrew verb, thus exploring the broader issue of the expression of time in language and the ways in which we can attempt to understand and represent it. Tal Goldfajn offers a summary of this controversy, which has been argued over since at least the tenth century, presenting previous scholarly opinions and theories. She argues that one possible way of understanding the fundamental meanings of the Hebrew verbs is by examining the role played in ordering time by the four main verb forms used in biblical Hebrew narrative. Accordingly, emphasis is given to the intersentential use of these forms and the variety of interesting ways in which they establish the order of events.

Don Collett, an experienced Old Testament scholar, offers an account of Old Testament interpretation that capitalizes on recent research in figural exegesis. Collett examines the tension between figural and literal modes of exegesis as they developed in Christian thought, introduces ongoing debates and discussions concerning figural readings of Scripture, and offers theological readings of several significant Old Testament passages. This book will work well as a primer on figural exegesis for seminarians or as a capstone seminary text that ties together themes from courses in Bible, exegesis, and theology.

For the past twenty-five years Americans have relied on Pulitzer Prize-winning wordsmith William Safire for their weekly dose of linguistic illumination in The New York Times Magazine's column "On Language" -- one of the most popular features of the magazine and a Sunday-morning staple for innumerable fans. He is the most widely read writer on the English language today. Safire is the guru of contemporary vocabulary, speech, language, usage and writing. Dedicated and disputatious readers itch to pick up each column and respond to the week's linguistic wisdom with a gotcha letter to the Times. The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time marks the publication of Safire's sixteenth book on language. This collection is a classic to be read, re-read, enjoyed and fought over. Fans, critics and fellow linguists wait with bated (from the French abattre "to beat down") breath for each new anthology -- and, like its predecessors, this one is bound to satisfy and delight. Safire finds fodder for his columns in politics and current events, as well as in science, technology, entertainment and daily life. The self-proclaimed card-carrying language maven and pop grammarian is not above tackling his own linguistic blunders as he detects language trends and tracks words, phrases and clichés to their source. Scholarly, entertaining and thoughtful, Safire's critical observations about language and slanguage are at once provocative and enlightening. Safire is America's go-to guy when it comes to language, and he has included sharp and passionately opinionated letters from readers across the English-speaking world who have been unable to resist picking up a pen to put the maven himself in his place or to offer alternate interpretations, additional examples, amusing anecdotes or just props. The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time is a fascinating, learned and piquant look at the oddities and foibles that find their way into the English language. Exposing linguistic hooey and rigamarole and filled with Safire's trademark wisdom, this book has a place on the desk or bedside table of all who share his profound love of the English language -- as well as his penchant for asking "What does that mean?" Or, "Wassat?" This new collection is sure to delight readers, writers and word lovers everywhere and spark the interest of anyone who has ever wondered, "Where did the phrase 'brazen hussy' come from?"